We look forward to starting a new group of band students next year and I would like to invite your child to join our beginning program at Enka Intermediate School (EIS) this Fall.
At the start of the new school year, EIS will offer one class for beginning band students. This class is typically split with woodwinds/percussion in one room and brass in the other. To get started on the first day of class, we are offering a parent/student drop-in meeting on Tuesday, May 2nd at 4:00 or 7:00. Please come by the EIS gym and allow us to assist your child in selecting the instrument that best suits his/her interests, physical structure, and coordination skills. Attendance at this meeting is required for your child to participate in band next year. If neither of these two times work for you, please contact me at kevin.kimbrough@bcsemail.org to schedule another session.
Facial structure, teeth, and hand size have a great deal to do with the success or failure of beginning band students. Please allow the music staff this opportunity and your child the advantage to succeed in this new experience. Most instruments can be obtained on a “rent-to-own” with local music dealers for around $30-$55 per month. Monies paid as rent go toward ultimately purchasing the instrument.
There is no prerequisite for beginning band students; however, if your child has taken piano lessons, he/she is encouraged to participate and is guaranteed a position starting on percussion if interested. Piano students typically excel in band because they are already proficient in the musical language. The only opportunity band students will have to become a member is when they sign up as a rising sixth grader.
Band classes also do not conflict with after school athletic events. We have plenty of gifted athletes in our bands, and we encourage our students to get involved with other school programs. Throughout Western North Carolina and across the country, band members are selected for their respective “All-Conference” sports teams every school year. Many who are best at sports are also the best on their instrument.
If your child is even slightly interested in the band, please encourage his/her participation. It has been proven that band is one of the few activities that involves both sides of the brain simultaneously. The creative side of the brain is used to listen to the ensemble and play with a balanced sound while the technical side of the brain is used to play the notes and rhythms. This experience is key to students’ mind-to-body connections and will improve their thinking and social skills. Band also teaches lifelong skills of individual/group responsibility, organization, and respect.
